Russell Haywood Moore Jr.

Russell Haywood Moore, Jr. passed away at the age of 82 at The Laurels of Summit Ridge on March 18, 2025. Russell was born on the family farm in Portageville, MO on September 2, 1942, to his beloved mother, Lorene Winder Murley. He met the love of his life, Nancy Milligan, in 7th-grade homeroom and they married on June 5th, 1964. Russell graduated as valedictorian of Blytheville High School class of 1960. He earned a BA in English from Hendrix College, a MA in English from the University of Memphis and an EdS from George Peabody College.

In 1969, he was thrilled to be hired by Dr. Wilson Wood to join the faculty in the English Department at WKU. It was there that he faithfully served for 49 years, retiring as Assistant Professor Emeritus in 2018. Russell truly loved teaching. His laid-back, informal teaching style ingratiated him to thousands of students. Eschewing the tradition of lecturing to rows of students, Russell’s classroom was one of circular seating with open discussions, acting more as a facilitator than instructor. His classes were full of laughter and fun — he was known for playing music, frequently Elvis, before most classes. He met individually with every student and this simple but seldom used policy led to countless mentoring relationships that lasted beyond the students time in his course.

He was a stalwart in the distance learning department, teaching thousands more students multiple courses year-round for his entire teaching career. His school spirit ran deep and he began wearing red on Fridays then everyday to show support for his Toppers. He served on the faculty senate and spoke often and proudly of his time on the academic probationary committee. It was there that he often lent a sympathetic ear to students seeking second and third chances at WKU.

Russell always had a big smile on his face and never met a stranger. Family trips were often delayed at each stop because he had met a new friend. Russell was an ever-present father to his three children. He enjoyed coaching Tee-Ball and little league at BG East. He fed countless tennis balls to his kids, later dubbed “Mr. Tennis” by WKU coach Jeff True. Russell and Nancy spent retirement traveling the country together and came up just short of their goal of seeing all 50 states. His 15 minutes of fame came when he appeared on the History Channel episode of How the States Got Their Shape.

He was preceded in death by his mother and his daughter, the light of his life, Dr. Echo Megan Moore, MD. He is survived by his wife of 61 years Nancy Milligan Moore of Asheville, NC, sisters Camilla Kay Chitman (Wendall) of Jonesboro, AR and Terra Tiffany (Mark) of Taos, NM, sons Dov Moore (Linda) of Settlers Run, KY and Devon Milligan Moore (Kat) of Asheville, NC, grandchildren Jessica Harting of Franklin, KY, Sawyer Moore of Rochester, MN, Emily Moore of New York, NY, Mills Echo Moore and Garvin Echo Moore both of Asheville, NC.

The family would like to thank the compassionate caregivers at The Oaks of Sweeten Creek and The Laurels of Summit Ridge for their care of Russell in his final months. Tributes can be expressed on the Asheville Area Alternative Funeral Home site. In lieu of flowers, the family asks for donations to FernLeaf Community Charter School that was completely destroyed by flood waters during Hurricane Helene. Private family ceremony to be held at future date.

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